ESPN hot take guru: James Harden callout of Daryl Morey 'personal'

The gloves are off in the feud between James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers.

During an Adidas media event held in China, Harden took aim at Daryl Morey, the president of basketball operations for the 76ers.

"Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of," Harden said, repeating the statement for extra emphasis.

Harden's comments perked up the ears of ESPN personality Marcus Spears. 

"This was personal," he said on Monday's episode of ESPN's "First Take." "To flat out call Daryl Morey a liar after all of the good things that have transpired between these guys, this is more than just basketball at this point, and James Harden made that very clear by his tone and absolutely by what he said verbatim."

Harden's blatant shot seemingly puts an end to a fruitful relationship relationship with Morey.  

The Oklahoma City Thunder traded Harden to the Houston Rockets — where Morey served as general manager — in October 2012. During eight seasons with Morey in Houston, the star guard led the NBA in scoring three times, and the Rockets appeared in two Western Conference Finals. After going their separate ways, the pair reunited in Philadelphia when the Nets dealt Harden to the 76ers in February 2022. 

Harden soon after took one for his new team, declining his $47.4 million player option and agreeing to a $15 million pay cut in July 2022. The freed-up cash was later used to bolster the roster with free agents, notably P.J. Tucker.

Loyalty wasn't shown both ways, however, as Morey and the 76ers didn't offer their point guard a long-term contract offer in June. Harden subsequently picked up his $35.4 million player option and demanded a trade — a request that wasn't taken seriously by Philadelphia.

Harden's comments on Monday signaled his rocky time with the 76ers had finally reached a head. Now, the ball is back in Morey's court.